Teens and money: Boys VS girls – who are better?
The Wall Street Journal runs a sensational column online by Stephen Kreider Yoder and his two sons. This week they were talking about the differences between teenage boys and girl, particularly their approach to money (thank goodness, the other discussion is endless). I seem to remember my feelings in high school being general disbelief that guys could be from such a different planet (and if we’re being honest, that feeling hasn’t entirely dissipated with the years). But about money? I’d never really thought about it.
Looking at my own family, it’s hard to see a pattern that has developed along gender lines. Of the three of use, only one of my brothers is good with money. Actually, he’s better than good, he’s phenomenal. He had my parents on a savings scheme when he was about 8 years old. While I and my younger brother have a tendency to hemorrhage money, he has a very solid savings account. So, no dice on the gender differences there. But what about it the wider world?
The new thing
Stereotypically, girls spend more than guys in the teenage years. Not all girls like clothes, shoes and makeup, but a lot do and spend copious amounts of money on those items. Guys, I guess, are more likely to spend money on video games. According to the Yoder article, girls seemed to feel that guys save up and spend in one hit, whereas girls are more likely to work steadily and spend steadily. There certainly is a ‘new thing’ glamour with some teenage girls that I’ve never noticed as overtly in males.
Earning your stripes
While it could be said that girls spend more, the cyberworld seems to feel they also work earlier and more often. I got my first job as soon as I could- at a precious 14 and nine months- whereas both my brothers took much longer to find the urge to work. Most girls I know have been working from the moment it was legal, and a lot of us have younger brothers who only started working in the latter years of high school or after high school was finished.
Maybe it’s because girls want to spend more, or that shopping is stereotypically associated as a desirable activity, or maybe it’s just because teenage girls can more mature about things like employment.
The parentals
Of course, as these articles always do, a lot of it comes back to parenting styles. How you spend or save money affects how your child does, this has been ascertained. But does it change between your teenage girls and boys?
Yes, according to Yoder. Safety, and its attendant monetary costs, is a factor for parents of teenage girls. They say they are more likely to buy their daughters a properly functioning car, than to risk her breaking down in a dark street. They’re more concerned if their daughter wants to work a late shift than their son.
Some parents feel that teenage girls always wanted more things, usually clothes. I don’t know that’s quite as true as it once was. Men are much more likely to spend money on clothes and personal beauty products than they once were, and that applies to teenage boys as well. Irregardless, it’s a stereotype that has persisted.
Do you feel teenage girls and boys think differently about money?
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